From buying rainbow macarons at the Hello Kitty Cafe Truck to sipping gluten-reduced beer while listening to reggae music, there's plenty to do, see and taste this weekend in Ventura County.

1. GET THE CHICKEN

Inspired by National Fried Chicken Day on July 6, the gourmet hot dog, sausage and hamburger chain Dog Haus is branching out with a chicken sandwich created with an assist from "Top Chef" season-two winner Ilan Hall.

Dubbed the Bad Mutha Clucka, the sandwich (about $7.99) features a crispy chicken breast on a grilled King's Hawaiian roll with house-made miso ranch, red chili flakes, lettuce and pickles. It is available at the chain's location in Thousand Oaks and beyond (50 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., 805-497-3644, http://www.doghaus.com).

"Top Chef" season 2 winner Ilan Hall had a hand in creating the Bad Mutha Clucka, a chicken sandwich now available at Dog Haus locations in Thousand Oaks and beyond.(Photo: CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

2. SHARE YOUR RECIPE FOR SALSA

Does your salsa recipe blow everybody else's out of the water? There could be $100 in it for you, thanks to the Great Oxnard Salsa Challenge presented as part of the 24th annual Oxnard Salsa Festival.

The deadline is July 7 to register up to two recipes in categories that include best mild, best red, best hot and best fruit/specialty. Winner of the Judges' Choice Award will receive $100; first-place category winners will each receive a festival goodie bag. The entry fee is $25 per recipe and includes one souvenir T-shirt per contestant. For details and an entry form, click on http://bit.ly/2tRqPhj.

The festival will feature salsa the condiment, the dance and the music when it takes place from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. July 29-30 in Oxnard's Plaza Park (805-535-4060, http://oxnardsalsafestival.com).

3. SAY 'HELLO' TO THE HELLO KITTY TRUCK

Question: What's pink and has four wheels? Answer: the Hello Kitty Cafe Truck, which is scheduled to roll up to The Collection at RiverPark in Oxnard for an appearance from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. July 8. (Fans of the wide-eyed, bow-wearing feline will find the truck — described as a "mobile vehicle of cuteness" — at Park View Court near the White House Black Market store.)

On board will be such prepared food items as a four-pack of petit fours ($15, according to a Yelper who hit the truck last month in Scottsdale), a boxed set of rainbow-hued macarons ($15) and a box of three, individually shrink-wrapped Hello Kitty/Sanrio cookies ($12). Vaguely bow-shaped bottles of water ($3) and mugs with bow-shaped handles ($13) will be available along with Hello Kitty T-shirts and headbands.

The truck has been on the road since its debut at Hello Kitty Con in 2014; this will be its first visit to Oxnard.

When it opens to the public on July 8, Leashless Brewing Co. in downtown Ventura will be the first Ventura County brewery to offer gluten-reduced options among its certified-organic, Belgian-style beers — and the first to be located in a former automotive repair shop built in the 1930s.

The brewery's debut will double as a ticketed concert by the Los Angeles-based reggae band The Expanders (from 4:30 p.m.). General admission tickets, $15, grant entry from 3-10 p.m. Holders of VIP tickets, $20, get in at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online at http://bit.ly/2tdxl11; they will also be sold at the door.

Don't let the lack of vacation time and/or money keep you from eating around the world. International dishes will be served along with lamb bacon and more traditional fare (think scrambled eggs and hash browns) when Tierra Sur, the white-tablecloth restaurant inside Herzog Wine Cellars in Oxnard, presents its World Tour Brunch from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. July 9.

Lisa McKinnon is a staff writer for The Star. Her Cafe Society column appears in the Time Out and Sunday Life sections. For between-column updates, follow 805foodie on Twitter and Instagram and "like" the VCS Eats Facebook page. To have the VCS Eats newsletter delivered directly to your inbox, visit http://bit.ly/VCS_Eats and type in your email address.